American Go E-Journal

(UPDATED!)More than a dozen strong players have already signed up for the five-round Swiss qualifier to represent the U.S. in the Sport Accord Mind Games (SAMG) in December 2011. The registration deadline is 8P (EST) Tuesday, July 5. The field includes five former North American Ing Masters (NAIM) champions: Feng Yun 9P, Huiren Yang 1P, Jie Li 7d, Joey Hung 7d and Andy Liu 7d. Five players, including at least one female, will play in SAMG against five other strong teams including China, Korea, Japan, Europe and Chinese Taipei (representing Asia-Pacific). This means the US players will play against top players in the world like the legendary Lee Changho, Lee Sedol, Gu Li, Kong Jie, Cho U and Iyama Yuta. The qualifier will be held on July 10-12, July 13-16, July 17-20, July 21-23, and July 24-26 on KGS. Players may reschedule with mutual consent, otherwise they must play at the official game times: 8 pm ET/5 pm PT on July 11 (Mon), 14 (Thur), 18 (Mon), 21 (Thur) and 25 (Mon).Due to the tight schedule there may be some short notices, so organizers note that players are responsible for checking and replying emails in a timely manner.- Zhiyuan ‘Edward’ Zhang